QUEER(ING) ONOMASTICS: NAMES AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF NONNORMATIVE GENDERS AND SEXUALITIES IN SELECTED SHORT STORIES IN QUEER AFRICA: NEW AND COLLECTED FICTION (original) (raw)
Related papers
Queering the Racial Other: Towards a Queer Africa
New Literaria An International Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies in Humanities ISSN- 2582-7375 [Online], 2023
This paper aims to explore recent developments in queer representation in 21 st century African literature. Africa's history with the legitimization of homosexuality is complicit with politics of invisibility, silencing, erasure and rigid cultural ideologies. The Same-Sex Marriage Prohibition Act (SSMPA) of Nigeria which was enacted in 2014 saw a furore among both old and new generation African writers who were embittered by the systemic erasure of LGBTQIA+ lives. Wole Soyinka's portrayal of the mulatto Joe Golder in The Interpreters was the closest that an African writer had come to representing a non-straight, non-heterosexual character in the panorama of African literature. While the only accomplishment of Soyinka's character remains a sympathetic portrayal of a homosexual, it also suggests the possibility of closeted queer presence in Africa. The beginning of the 21 st century witnessed a bold flourish of queer literature-Chris Abani's GraceLand (2004) and Jude Dibia's Walking with Shadows (2005) present queer protagonists who struggle to come to terms with their queerness and radicalize anachronistic notions of gender and sexuality. Later works by new generation African writers have effectively succeeded in debunking the premise that 'homosexuality is un-African' on which the draconian SSMPA had been built. Chinelo Okparanta's Under the Udala Trees (2015) reinvents the bildungsroman by placing a queer African girl as the hero of her story. Akwaeke Emezi's The Death of Vivek Oji (2020) explores the liminalities of gender and sexuality, the rites of passage that presages the fate of self-identified queer people within a social context that is hostile to sexual difference. This paper will analyze how all these works rewrite the history of African queer people into the nation's body politic by strategically applying pertinent theoretical frameworks like race, gender and sexuality, biopolitics, politics of heteronormativity, and queer necropolitics.
New Perspectives on Sexualities in Africa
Introduction New Perspectives on Sexualities in Africa Marc Epprecht, Queen’s University Sexualités africaines contemporaines: nouvelles perspectives. Charles Gueboguo, Université de Yaoundé 1. Articles “The widow, the will, and widow-inheritance in Kampala: revisiting victimisation arguments,” Stella Nyanzi, Maragaret Emodu, Wilberforce Serwaniko 7100 words Faith in God, but not in Condoms: Churches and Competing Visions of HIV Prevention in Namibia, Nicole Rigillo 8537 words Deaf, gay, HIV positive and proud: Narrating an alternative identity in post apartheid South Africa, Ruth Morgan, Karin Willemse with John Meletse 8529 “Mombasa Morans:” Embodiment, Sexual Morality and Samburu Men in Kenya, George Paul Meiu 8932 Transactions sexuelles: sur les rétributions des pratiques homosexuelles à Bamako Christophe Broqua 7977 Penser les ‘droits’ des homosexuels/les en Afrique: du sens et de la puissance de l’action associative militante au Cameroun Charles Gueboguo 7550 Book Review Essays “African feminists on sexualities” Signe Arnfred 3000 Feminist Africa, issues 5 (2005) and 6 (2006) Agenda, issues 62 (2004), 63 (2005), 67 (2006) “Sexualities, Pleasure and Politics in Southern Africa” Bodil Fredericksen 2200 Graeme Reid and Liz Walker, guest editors, Sex and Secrecy, special issue of Culture, Health and Sexualty, 7 (3), 2005 Deevia Bhana, Robert Morrell, Jeff Hearn and Relebohile Moletsane, guest editors, Sexualities in Southern Africa, special issue of Sexualities 10 (2), 2007 “Southern African Homosexualities and Denials” Stephen O. Murray 1945 Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe. Unspoken Facts: A History of African Homosexualities Harare: GALZ 2007. 321+xi pp. Hoad, Neville. African Intimacies: Race, Homosexuality, and Globalization. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press 2007. 187 + xxxiii pp. Spurlin, William J. Imperialism within the Margins: Queer Representations and the Politics of Culture in Southern Africa. New York: Palgrave Macmillan 2006. 182+ ix pp. Contre l’homophobie en Afrique (version française) Patrick Awondo 1289 Charles Gueboguo, La question homosexuelle en Afrique. Le cas du Cameroun. Paris: l’Harmattan, 2006. 187 pp. Eboussi Boulaga (ed.), Terroirs, « L’homosexualité est bonne à penser », n°1-2/2007 Yaoundé: Académia Africana, 2007. 311 pp. “African Perspectives on Female Circumcision” Amy Kaler 1733 Mary Nyangweso Wangila. Female Circumcision: The Interplay of Religion, Culture and Gender in Kenya. Maryknoll NY: Orbis Books, 2007. 206 pp. Obioma Nnaemeka ed. Female Circumcision and the Politics of Knowledge: African Women in Imperialist Discourses. New York: Praeger, 2005. 296 pp. “Same sex-sexuality issues in some African popular media” Unoma Azuah 1100 Dibia, Jude. Walking with Shadows. Sands Press, Lagos, Nigeria, 2005. Aidoo, Ama, Ata (ed.) African Love Stories, Ayebia Clarke Publishing, London, 2006. Book Reviews Sévérin Cécile Abéga, Violence Sexuelle et l’État au Cameroun (Karthala 2007). Sybille N. Nyeck Julia Carter The Heart of Whiteness (Duke UP: 2007). Barrington Walker Catherine M Cole, Takyiwa Manuh and Stephan F Miescher (eds.) Africa After Gender (2007) Brigitte Bagnol Cary Alan Johnson. Off the Map: How HIV/AIDS Programming is Failing Same-Sex Practicing People in Africa. (New York: International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission, 2007). 124 pp. Amanda Swarr Ruth Morgan and Saskia Wieringa (eds). Tommy Boys, Lesbian Men and Ancestral Wives: Female Same-Sex Practices in Africa. (Johannesburg: Jacana, 2005). Sam Bullington 997 Eleanor Maticka-Tyndale, Richmond Tiemoko and Paulina Makinwa-Adebusoye (eds), Human Sexuality in Africa: Beyond reproduction (Auckland Park, Fanele Jacana Media, 2007). Robert Morrell 1280 Nattrass, Nicoli. Mortal Combat: AIDS Denialism and the Struggle for Antiretrovirals in South Africa. (Scottsville: University of KwaZulu-Natal Press, 2007). Mary Caesar 800 Stephanie Newell. The Forgers Tale: The Search for Odeziaku. (Athens: Ohio University Press, 2007). Taiwo Oluntorubo-Oju Alexander Rödlach. Witches, Westerners and HIV: AIDS and Cultures of Blame in Africa. (Walnut Creek, CA: Left Coast Press, 2006). Allison Goebel T. Shefer, K. Ratele, A. Strebel, N. Shabalala and R. Buikema (eds.) From Boys to Men: Social constructions of masculinity in contemporary society. (Cape Town, South Africa: UCT Press, 2007). Mikki van Zyl 921 WORKS CITED
Queer in Africa - LGBTQI Identities, Citizenship, and Activism
Vasu Reddy, Surya Monro, and Zethu Matebeni - Queer in Africa - LGBTQI Identities, Citizenship, and Activism , 2018
Sexuality in Africa is a multifaceted domain, deeply material (visceral, embodied, and politicised), and, like gender, informed by interlocking political, social, class, religious, cultural, and economic interests. ‘Sexual politics’ undergirds the circuits of power informing the shape, architecture, and patterns of African queer lives because the gendered hierarchy is sexualised by powerful cisgender men and states, anchored in patriarchy, and in turn circumscribed by heteropolar regimes of gender that make sex dangerous for sexual minorities. Therefore, to be queer in Africa is to be in effect constrained and regulated by the ‘heterosexual matrix’ ( Butler 1999 ), ‘the straight mind’ ( Wittig 1992 ), and the ‘compulsory heterosexuality’ ( Rich 1980 ) that informs the hegemonic order of heterosexuality. Gender variance in Africa is similarly constricted by compulsory gender binarism, patriarchy, and heterosexism.
Culture Health & Sexuality, 2005
This paper examines the intellectual and social origins of racialist homophobia in contemporary Zimbabwean political discourse, exemplified by President Robert Mugabe's anti-homosexual speeches since the mid-1990s. It challenges the notions that such homophobia is either essential to African patriarchy or simple political opportunism. Tracing overt expressions of intolerance towards male-male sexuality back to the colonial period, it focuses on ways in which notions of appropriate, respectable, exclusive heterosexuality within the 'cowboy' culture of White Southern Rhodesia trickled into, or were interpreted in, the African nationalist movement. It concludes that understanding this history could improve efforts to address concerns around sexual health in Zimbabwe and elsewhere in the region, particularly silences around same-sex sexuality in HIV/AIDS education and prevention.
AN AFRICAN OR UN-AFRICAN SEXUAL IDENTITY
The politicisation of sexuality expressed especially in politically and religiously sanctioned homophobia in sub-Saharan Africa is a multi-faceted phenomenon that invites an interdisciplinary approach. This chapter contends that since sexual politics ‘easily traverse state’ boundaries (Weiss 2013, 166), Africa’s politicisation of sexuality should be understood from the perspective of globalisation on one hand, and Africa’s socio-political and religious realities on the other hand. Globalisation has compressed the world and widened transcontinental interactions, weakened cultural boundaries and broken up space and time in socio-political and economic collaborations. The establishment of competitive democracy in sub-Saharan Africa, for example, has opened up new political space as well as introduced global political players on the continent. But since globalisation does not erase the local identities, through glocalisation, that is ‘the process of domesticating the global in local contexts’ (Kalu 2008, 189), interest groups adapt external ideologies and tactics to negotiate and shape their local socio-political landscape. In addition to defining globalisation, and discussing religion’s influence on Africa’s perception of homosexuality, the chapter explores how homosexuality feeds into neo-colonial politics. It ends with a discussion of the implications of globalisation and globalised religion on African sexual politics.
International Journal of Literature and Arts, 2020
This study demonstrates that prejudices towards homosexuals in Africa are stifling. Such bigotries stem from deeply rooted African traditional beliefs, and partly from the “ideals” of adopted religions. It is, therefore, unlikely for conformists of heterosexuality to experience resistance and homophobic tendencies. Adherents to this view include Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Chinelo Okparanta in there texts The Thing Around Your Neck and Under the Udala Tree respectively. These writers also hold that restraints, constraints and exclusion of all sorts form the caucus of xenophobia towards homosexuality in Africa. The paper argues that, homosexuality is not strictly a global northern issue; but also, an African phenomenon, even though it meets with unprecedented resentment and resistance due to received religions and socio-cultural stereotypes. The objective of this study is to examine, interpret, and analyze the texts, and showcase the deplorable attitude of Africans towards LGBT prac...
Imbizo, 2024
This article explores the resistance exhibited by queer characters against homophobic legislation and religious norms within the framework of gender performativity in selected short stories from Sub-Saharan Africa. The analysis focuses on narratives from diverse regions, including Stanley Kenani’s “Love on Trial” and “In the Best Interests of the Child” (Malawi), Monica Arac de Nyeko’s “Jambula Tree” (Uganda), Davina Owombre’s “Pelican Driver” (Nigeria), Emil Rorke’s “Poisoned Grief” (Zimbabwe), and Dolar Vasani’s “All Covered Up” (Tanzania). The article argues that the queer protagonists featured in the chosen short stories actively resist societal pressures towards compulsory sexuality and assigned gender roles. Within the sociopolitical contexts of the characters, laws and religious doctrines prescribe and enforce a heteronormative framework that homosexual characters are compelled to adhere to. The theoretical framework guiding this analysis draws from Judith Butler’s gender performativity, which challenges the assumption of a direct alignment between biological sex and gender identity. According to Butler, being biologically male or female does not dictate one’s gender identity, and the same principle applies to sexuality. The article examines how heteronormative laws and homophobic religious doctrines contribute to the construction of mandatory sexuality and assigned gender roles. Through the lens of characterisation, the article analyses how queer characters in the selected stories actively challenge and denounce the homophobia perpetuated by these legal and religious structures. This exploration sheds light on the nuanced ways in which gender performativity theory manifests in the lived experiences and narratives of queer individuals in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Disordering and reordering African Sexualities through the Power of Language and Naming
Among the aspects that make complex the understanding of African sexualities 2 is that of linguistic and interpretation. As a power, language has through descriptions and naming, been used to mediate, disorder, and reorder sexualities in African societies. This process is often gendered and can be recognised through words, phrases and expressions that communicate certain dynamics of power. As a tool of power language has been utilized by colonialism, Christian missions, cultural traditionalists, popular culture protagonists, and international bodies to lodge colonialists' linguistics while dislodging many African traditional languages and practices. Practices such as Female genital circumcision (FGC) have persisted partly due to linguistic limitations.Whether FGC is understood as a 'mutilation' or 'other', nevertheless language plays a central role in obscuring efforts to address health complications associated with the practice. The paper uses an African feminist approach. First, it argues that linguistic aspects that embed the contemporary understanding of African sexualities have colonialist and Christian missions' roots, and that the dislodging of local languages has facilitated continued violence against women. Second, by taking the case of female genital circumcision as still practiced by some communities among the Sabiny people of Uganda the paper argues that the internationally recognised term of 'mutilation' may not necessarily be 'communicating' to the practicing communities, instead may be interpreted and resisted as imperialistic. " Whether we call it discourse, rhetoric or semantics, the use of certain kind of language matters. Language is learned, in part, by observing, assessing, and naming not only things in material world or the intellectual universe but also by classifying people's behaviour. Linguistic statements (or words, phrases) often imply judgements about the social identity of a particular human being or a group of people " (Gouda, 1999:163). Sexuality one of the discourses that calls people's immediate attention yet at the same time approached and expressed in a coded metaphorical language may not be understood without paying attention to the aspect of linguistics. Seemingly 'Hidden' yet 'pokes' through our day today expressions and behavior, sexuality has been disordered, reordered, gendered, and exposed to the measure of hierarchies. Forces such as colonialism, Christian missions, cultural traditions, popular cultures, globalization, as well as international bodies such as Word health Organization (WHO) have in their particular times succeeded in either or both disordering and reordering the understanding of sexuality in Africa. The use of language and semiotics has been effectively used in this agenda. 1 Gyaviira Kisitu is from Uganda, a PhD candidate at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in the school of Religion, Philosophy and Classics. His research interest focuses on sexualities, gender and African theology. +27783407451/kisitudavis@yahoo.com 2 The term African sexualities is used to " highlight those aspects of cultural ideology…widely shared among the vast majority of people within the geographical entity baptized 'Africa' by colonial map makers. It is used politically to call attention to some of the commonalities and shared historical legacies inscribed in cultures and sexualities within the region by forces such as colonialism, capitalism, imperialism, globalization and fundamentalism " (Tamale, 2014:151).
Contemporary fictional representations of sexualities from authoritarian African contexts
2016
In this dissertation, I investigate the contentious subject of sexualities as represented in fiction from selected Anglophone African countries which, even post-independence, have tended to enforce authoritarian, hetero-patriarchal control. The study explores how contemporary African writers, writing in (or in relation to) repressive contexts, represent uneasy intersections between socio-cultural understandings of sexuality, gender, and desire, entailing varieties of relation such as control, reciprocity, negotiation and resistance. Allowing for some flexibility in categories, the dissertation analyses the treatment of male sexualities in novels by Helon Habila, Moses Isegawa, and Tendai Huchu; female sexualities in novels by Sefi Atta, Doreen Baingana, and Lola Shoneyin, and depictions of queer sexualities in short fiction by Monica Arac de Nyeko, Chinelo Okparanta, Stanley Onjezani Kenani, and Beatrice Lamwaka. All of these writers, in their respective contexts, offer fictional representations that unevenly subvert hegemonic sexual norms and discourses, even while they also draw on received ways of making sense of gendered and sexual identities. The thesis argues that such ambiguities attest to the complexity of understanding and representing sexualities in Africa, and that fiction, precisely because of its capacity to engage uncertainty, comprises an important mode of mediating repressive socio-political and cultural norms, showing the potential for fiction as a space which engages risky, even taboo, topics. The fictional texts studied make a varied case against the common assumption of a restrictive, monolithic, supposedly proper "African sexuality" that authoritarian governments attempt to reinforce. I argue that through the narrative spaces of fiction, contemporary African authors highlight the tensions and contradictions which shape sexualities, with regimes of sexual knowledge being always in a process of relational negotiation, even in coercive socio-political contexts.